Wetsuits, that is, closely-fitting suits of “Neoprene” rubber or like materials, are commonly worn by surfers, kayakers, divers, swimmers, and others whose chosen activities require long-term immersion in or exposure to water, both salt and fresh. In this application reference is made to “surfers” or other wearers, for simplicity, but all classes of persons wearing wetsuits are intended to be included therein. To the extent similar problems may occur with other tight-fitting garments, such as drysuits, the invention is applicable thereto as well.
The typical wetsuit comprises a form-fitting suit that covers the torso and at least the upper arms and legs of the wearer. The typical material of the wetsuit is a polychloroprene or “neoprene” closed-cell foam layer backed on at least its outer surface with a fabric layer for strength; typical materials for the fabric layer are synthetics such as those known in the art as Nylon, Lycra or Spandex. In use, a layer of water is confined between the wearer's skin and the foam inner layer, and is warmed by the user's body heat, providing an insulative layer. Commonly, a slide fastener is provided running up the back of the wetsuit, along the wearer's spine, from a closed end in the region of the waist to an open termination at the neck opening, to enable the wetsuit to be donned and later removed. Typically a collar portion of the wetsuit extends partially up the neck of the wearer. The slide fastener then terminates at the upper edge of the neck opening. A flap is sometimes provided that extends from one side of the upper back across the slide fastener to the other side, and is secured with hook-and-loop material.
Another type of wetsuit is the “step in” type, wherein the wearer stretches out the neck opening and pulls the suit over his or her body to don it.
The material of the wetsuit is usually rather stiff and tight-fitting, such that the neck opening terminates at a relatively hard edge, the flexibility of which is further limited by the upper termination of the slide fastener, if used, and by the flap, if provided. As the wearer moves, the edge of the neck opening, particularly in the region of the upper termination of the slide fastener, if provided, tends to chafe his or her skin. This chafing can be very painful, and typically takes some days to heal, preventing comfortable wearing of the wetsuit for more than one or a very few days in succession. Similar chafing tends to occur at the ends of the arm openings of the wetsuit, especially where the wetsuit is of the short-sleeved “spring” type, where the arm portions end at the biceps. Again, the skin of the wearer tends to be painfully chafed by the edge of the opening in the wetsuit, which has to fit tightly to limit incursion of water.
The prior art has recognized this problem, at least inferentially. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,096,506 to Ragot shows a design for a wetsuit comprising an internal collar which would appear to provide some protection against chafing in the neck area against the edge of the neck opening of the wetsuit, although this does not appear to have been mentioned specifically. However, Ragot's neck collar is to be fixed to an internal surface of the wetsuit; as an integral part of the wetsuit, Ragot's collar is not suitable for use with pre-existing wetsuits. It would be desirable to provide a chafe-preventing collar that could be used with pre-existing wetsuits, so that a surfer or other user could enjoy the benefits of a chafe-preventing collar without having to incur the expense of purchasing a new wetsuit having this feature.
Likewise, the O'Neill company offers a “Mutant” model wetsuit that includes a collar that is meant to be zipped to the wetsuit, again to reduce chafing. Again, this is only suitable for use with the corresponding wetsuit and does not address the needs of those who already own wetsuits.